I have been quilting for many years. If you count the first quilt that I made I have been doing it for close to twenty years. Though, my first real attempts started some ten years ago. My first attempts were made out of simple cotton or linen squares. Things that I had on hand. And as avid quilters will tell you some of the beginners mistakes. For example I did not pre-wash the linen. And after you have done it for a while you know that you should always pre-wash else you run the risk of having them fall apart.
Sure you can go through the hassel of basting them and then binding them, but the risk isn't completely gone.
That is why today I wash and dry every bit of fabric that comes in the house, except wool.
Instead of giving my old quilts away I washed them and those that held up, well, they were still at risk of coming apart, but I felt better about them. The ones that came apart, instead of throwing them away I just cut it up and used it for other projects.
I love working with linen, but I am more careful today. But it is a fabric that comes with a risk. It is because linen shrinks more than other quilting materials, then when a quilt is washed the cotton seams will stay together while the rest of the linen square will pull away. It happens all the time. And the reason is because linen is stronger than cotton.